Draft proposed ala core competencies compared to ALA-accredited, candidate, and precandidate program curricula : A preliminary analysis

Introduction This research shows that ALA-accredited programs have curricula in line with the latest draft proposed ALA core competencies.2 Of the 56 institutions hosting ALA-accredited programs, 53 (94.6%) have courses to address all eight (8) core competencies. Were the draft proposed core competencies to be adopted by ALA, under the flexible language of the Standards, programs would be able to continue to deliver courses consistent with the core competencies in the same manner as they currently do. The American Library Association's descriptive accreditation standards allow programs to accomplish their goals in a manner that is "[c]onsistent with the values of the parent institution and the culture and mission of the school, [and] program goals and objectives." (Standard I) The ALA Standards require that an accredited program's mission, goals, and objectives reflect "the philosophy, principles, and ethics of the field" (Standard I) and that its curriculum "foster development of the competencies necessary for productive careers." (Standard III) ALA-accredited programs are meeting those requirements and the many others that the Standards require. Methodology This research was conducted during September and October 2005 using publicly available sources only. Course descriptions as contained in print and online graduate bulletins and catalogs were the primary sources used. When available, online syllabi were also consulted. Courses whose titles and descriptions did not clearly indicate that the content of a given competency was included were not counted for that competency. For example, while it seems likely that every "Introduction to Librarianship" survey course covers the ethics of the profession, unless ethics were specifically mentioned in the course description or syllabus, such a course was not counted as meeting the "Professional Ethics" core competency. The course number, course name, and whether the course was required for the degree program was recorded for each ALA-accredited, candidate, and precandidate program. Then, for a small, random sample of eight (8) programs, whether the course was offered in the fall 2005 semester and whether a full-time faculty member taught the course was also recorded. This information was entered into a spreadsheet program, which appears as Appendix B. Conclusion In November 2005, the ALA Committee on Accreditation gave a preliminary response to the latest version of the proposed draft core competencies. The Committee recognized the importance of competencies that reflect the "knowledge, skills, and experience" that librarians and other information professionals need and expressed appreciation for the inclusive approach of the proposed core competencies. However, the Committee noted that if the proposed draft competencies were meant to reflect "an individual's capacity to perform a certain activity" as competencies are usually understood to do, the competency statements need to be rewritten to show how the knowledge acquired through a course may be used effectively. For example, this would involve statements that define what an individual who demonstrates the "Knowledge Organization" competency can do, e.g. "Able to demonstrate basic knowledge of storing, preserving, and conserving information." These observations and others were forwarded to ALA Senior Associate Executive Director, Mary Ghikas, in November 2005 to share with the Committee on Education as a part of COA and COE's ongoing effort to facilitate discussion of the draft core competencies. Data Tables and Discussion Table 1 The core competency most often fulfilled with a required course is "Knowledge Organization" oras it is more traditionally known, cataloging.3 Of 56 ALA-accredited programs, 53 (94.6%) require such a course of their students for graduation. This is followed by "Professional Ethics" which is taught in a required course by 45 (80. …